Anja Paerson celebrates her first victory
of the season in Tarvisio.
GEPA
Are Tarvisio
Tarvisio Super G, March 6
It was a red, white and blue day as competition in sunny Tarvisio came to a close with the super G.
Vonn secured a crystal hat trick by taking her third consecutive super G globe — her 12th Cup title — with
the win, 0.23 seconds ahead of Mancuso in second.
With the No. 6 bib, American World Cup rookie Laurenne Ross held the lead until being bumped by her
two teammates into the third position. U.S. fans held their collective breath through the next four top-ranked racers until releasing it with a groan as Riesch spoiled the American podium sweep in third place,
just two-tenths of a second ahead of Ross, who finished fourth.
Vonn, Mancuso and Riesch were sharing a podium once again — the fourth time this season.
With only one super G left on this season’s schedule, Vonn’s 171-point lead on Riesch (560 to 389) was
well out of the German’s reach. Vonn won four of this season’s six super G races to date and finished
second in the other two. Mancuso, however, could still improve on her season super G ranking; she currently stands third with 315 points.
American ski racing fans will have to keep waiting for the first-ever U.S. alpine World Cup podium sweep
(of either gender). But there is a great deal of hope that they might not have to wait long as Ross has
shown great promise in her first full season on the World Cup tour with 13 scoring results and a 10th-place
finish in the downhill at her World Championships debut.
“It was really exciting to stand in the leaders’ box, especially when it was Julia, Lindsey and [me]; it was
really cool to have three American girls in there,” said Ross, 22. “I was a little bummed to miss the podium,
but I can’t complain with fourth place.”
Ross’s previous World Cup high was a 16th-place result in a super combined in December at Val d’Isere.
This result launched Ross into 16th in the season super G standings and earned her a ticket to World
Cup Finals.
“It was awesome; I wasn’t really expecting to stay where I was,” said Ross. “I knew I had to make top
15 to get to World Cup Finals so when I came down leading I was really psyched and I though it would
maybe stick top 15 but I didn’t realize I was going to be so fast overall. Any good result boosts your confidence. It proves to myself that I can be one of the best in the world. It helps me going into the next race,
knowing that I don’t have to worry about being slow or making it into the top 30. Now I know that I can be
in there.”
The last time U.S. women finished 1-2-4 was Jan. 14, 2007, in a Zauchensee super combined as Mancuso, Vonn (then Kildow) and Resi Stiegler accomplished the rare feat.
It was Mancuso’s 24th World Cup podium and her best result in a super G in three years. She has tallied
four World Cup podiums as well as a World Championships silver medal in this her best season in four
years. She currently stands in fifth place in the overall rankings with 836 points. Mancuso’s best overall
ranking came in 2007 when she finished third; that was the same year she scored her last World Cup win
with a downhill victory in Tarvisio.
“I wanted to be top three for super G this season and I knew that could happen,” said Mancuso. “Lindsey
SkiRacing.com MARCH 17, 2011 | 29
